Tyler Groft ’13 director of the Baker Institute for Entrepreneurship, Creativity & Innovation
Previously the director of sales and visitor experience at the Da Vinci Science Center, Groft was named the new director of the Baker Institute for Entrepreneurship, Creativity & Innovation in November 2023. He graduated from Lehigh with a Bachelor of Science Integrated Degree in Engineering, Arts and Sciences (IDEAS) and received his master’s in organizational leadership from Arizona State University. He aims to encourage students to use design and entrepreneurial thinking while pursuing the institute’s tenets of entrepreneurship, creativity and innovation.
Michael “Mike” Rinkunas ’02 ’08G Lehigh Ventures Lab director
In May, Rinkunas joined the Lehigh Ventures Lab as its new director. After earning his master’s in industrial engineering, Rinkunas began a diverse career in entrepreneurship. He founded several digital marketing firms before shifting to coaching and growing startup ventures. Rinkunas’ goal as the new director is to guide students as they build their ideas into new ventures and help them connect with financial partners. Outside of his business ventures, he is also a volunteer locomotive engineer at the Steamtown National Historic Site.
